The objective of this core is to provide diagnostic services, patient specimens and laboratory data in support of the projects within the center. The core is comprised of the director, the laboratory manager, and three research analysts. At each patient encounter, various specimens will be obtained and transported to the laboratory for testing, shipping and aliquot archiving. Specimens to be collected include vaginal swabs, urines, endocervical swabs, serum and lesion swabs. Among diagnostic assays that will be performed are polymerase chain reaction assays for C. trachomatis, N. gonorrhoeae, T. vaginalis and M. genitalium. In addition, vaginal swab specimens that contain C. trachomatis DNA will be processed for chlamydial strain genotyping by nucleotide sequencing of the omp1 gene, and for quantitative estimation of organism load by PCR. Fresh clinical isolates of herpes simplex virus types 1 and 2 will be obtained from subjects in the clinical core and provided to Dr. Spear for use in her mouse model of HSV genital infection. In addition, endocervical samples from women with and without N. gonorrhoeae infection will be provided for detection of gonococcal phospholipase D.